Loading machine



Aug. 10 1926.

1,595,567 N. A. NEWDICK LOADING 'M'ACHINE Filed Dec. 11, 1922 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Aug. 10,1926. 1,595,561

N. A. NEWDICK.

LOADING MACHINE Filed Dec. 11, 1922 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Aug. 10 1926.

N. A. NEWDICK LOADING MACHINE Filed Dec. 11, 1922 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Aug. 10 1926.

N. A. NEWDICK LOADING momma 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Dec. 11. 1922 i m N Patented Aug. 10, 1926.

messes? uairausrares PATENT OFFICE.

NORTON A. NEVJDICK. COLUMBUS, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO THE COLODER COMPANY,

' 0F COLUMBUS, OHIO, A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

LOADING MACHINE.

Application filed December, 11, 1922. Serial No. 606,240.

This invention relates to improvements in loading machines and is especially directed to loading machines: of the type employed in underground mines for the pur-' sists of gathering conveyor, comprising an elongated inclined frame which has its rear or elevated end pivotally'inounted about a compound pivotal support which enables the conveyor to swing bodily Zontal and vertical planes, with the forward or lower end thereof in engagement with the ground or floor, the said conveyor being formed to include an endless transmission belt arranged topass around sprockets provided at tie opposite ends of the franie and adapted for travel through substantially parallel guides, which are so disposed that the goingand return runs of the belt will be situated in corresponding planes, the said belt beingprovided with a plurality of spaced laterally proooting conveying arms or flights, which upon movement of the belt and the swinging of the conve or frame, will be brought into engagement with the materials to be loaded, carr: such materials through the con veyor in the line of draft of the machine, and finally depositing the same into suitable cars or carriers placed to the rear of the machine. 7 7

Among the objects of the invention are, first: To provide an improved mechanism upon the frame of the gathering conveyor by means of which the said conveyor is swung horizontally about its vertical pivotal support, and wherein the operation of said mechanism is effected by the source of power employed to drive the reversible transmission belt of the conveyor, and second, in the provision of an improved truck structure situated at the forward end of the gathering conveyor frame and mounted to assume active or inactive positions by means of which the machine may be readily transported over the track-way of a mine when being moved from place to place, when the said truck in both horistructure assumes its active position, with the front end of the gathering conveyor frame elevated from the floor and arranged in an elevated position removed from engagement. with track obstructions, and wherein when the said truck structure occupies'aninactive position, the front end of the gathering conveyor frame will be lowered for engageinentwith the ground and the truck structure itself maintained in a location free from hindering thesweep movements of the frame.

For a further understanding of the in- .ention, reference is to be had to the following description and to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of a loading machine constructed in aocordance with the features of the present invention.

Figure 2 is a vertical sectionalview taken through the gathering conveyor of the machine.

Figure 3 is a top plan view of said gathering conveyor.

Fi ure 4: is a verti view taken on the plane indicated by the line Figure 5 1S a ver 5'5 of Flgure 4.

Figure 6 1s a detailed vertical sectional invention in its entirety.

This machine is preferably of the type described in my copending application, Serial No. 439,092, filed January 22, 1921, and includes a portable base 2, inthe form of a wheeled truck, arranged for travel over a trackway 3. Mounted upon the truck 2 for swinging movement in a horizontal plane about a vertical" pivot disposed at the front end of the truck, is a bed plate 4, carrying at its front end a pair of bearings 5, which support for swinging movement in a vertical plane an oscillatory journal 6, through which passes a drive shaft 8, suitably driven from a motor 9 mounted upon the bed plate 4.

cal transverse sectional tical section on the line At its upper end the journal 6 pivotally supports the rear elevated end of the elongated inclined frame 10 of a gathering conveyor 11. The frame 10 is preferably constructed from suitably reinforced and braced structural sheet metal and is formed to include an elongated inclined body 13, which terminates forwardly in a substantially flat or depressed nose extremity 14, arranged for engagement, when the machine is in operat-ion, with the floor of a mine or other surface upon which material is deposited for loading purposes.

The rear end of the body 13 terminates in the elevated horizontally disposed rear extremity 15, which rests upon the upper end of the journal 6 and is supported by the latter, so that the frame may swing bodily in a horizontal plane, or may vibrate vertically in unison with the journal 6. By this construction the conveyor is of such length as to sweep across the width, for example, of a mine room, to gather materials loosely deposited upon and across the floor of said room, and to swing or move vertically to respond to unevenness in the floor surface upon which the nose extremity l l rests.

The conveyor 11 includes centrally disposed laterally extending guides 16, mounted upon the bottom 17 of the frame 10 and disposed between the elevated sides 18 of said frame. These guides are adapted to receive the going and return runs of an endless transmission belt 19, which belt is arranged to pass around head and foot sprockets 20 and 21 respectively, situated at the opposite ends of the guides 16 and the frame 10. The head sprocket 20., in this instance, is mounted upon the upper end of the driv shaft 8 to rotate therewith, and consequently upon the operation of the motor 9, which is of a reversible type, motion may be imparted to the belt 19. The foot sprocket 21 is carried in a longitudinally adjustable clevis casting 22, by means of which the belt is maintained at a desired degree of tension.

Extending laterally from the belt is a plurality of spaced conveying arms or flights 23, which project laterally from guides 16 and are adapted for travel through material conveying ways 29% provided longitudinally in the frame 10, and situated between the guides 16 and the frame sides 18. It will be seen that in operation the movable flights 23 will; pass around the foot sprocket 21 and brought into engagement with the materials deposited on the floor during the passage of. aid flights through an arcuate course of travel. The flights are thus enabled to advance the materials gathered through the alternately available ways 2i, and move the same through the conveyor 11 in the line of draft of the machine. The flights 23 project beyond the rear extremity 15 of the frame when passing around the head sprocket 20, and thus the materials engaged with said flights are discharged at this point from the gathering conveyor and deposited within a hopper 25, out of which leads a delivery conveyor 26. The delivery conveyor is mounted upon the bed plate 4 to swing in unison with said bed plate, and is driven by the motor 9,.the said delivery conveyor including an elevated overhanging rear end 27, arranged to project rearwardly of the truck 2 and to be arranged over a mine car not shown, into which materials handled by the machine are dischar ed and removed from the mine.

To effect horizontal swinging movement of the gathering conveyor 11, I provide upon the forward part of the frame 10 a pocketed sheave wheel 29, disposed for rotation in a substantially vertical plane, and having trained thereabout the intermediate portion of an ordinary anchor chain 30. The chain 20 has its links proportioned so as to be received within the pockets of the wvheel 29, and is'passed through hawse guides 31 carried in connection with the frame 10, so that the outer ends of said chain may be connected with a laterally disposed anchorage. By this construction.

it will be seen that upon rotation of the wheel 29 in a predetermined direction, the gathering conveyor will be swung horizontally and gradually in the direction of the lateral anchorage, enabling the flights to pass around the foot sprocket 21 to be maintained in engagement with the materials to be loaded.

In order to. minimize the weight of the gathering conveyor so as to facilitate the handling of the, latter, I provide an improved drive mechanism for the sheave wheel 29. This mechanism consists in providing the shaft 8 above the sprocket 20 with a miter gear 32, with which engages a similar gear carried upon a tubular shaft 34, ar ranged for rotation within bearings 35 mounted upon the upper part of the frame 10. The outer end of the shaft 34 is provided with a jaw clutch member 36, ar-

ranged for engagement with a similar mem-' ber 3 7,wl1ich is slid-ably keyed upon a shaft 38. naled in the tubular shaft 3i, and: its other end in bearings. The member 37 is annularly grooved as at .39 for the reception of the fork d0 of a throw lever 41, which latter is pivoted as at 42 and is actuated by a manually controlled shaft 43, so that the slide, clutch member 37 may be shifted longitudinally upon the shaft 38 into or out of engagement with the clutch member 36, thereby enabling the rotation of the shaft 38 to be governed at the will of the operator. The forward end of the shaft 38 is proriis shaft has one of its ends jour? vided with a bevel gear 44;, meshing with a similar gear 45, carried upon a short transversely extending shaft e6, whichis journaled in connection with the bearing 35. The shaft 46 is provided with a sprocket 47, around which is trained an endless chain 4.8. The chain 48 extends longitudinally of the frame 10 and the forward part thereof is trained over a sprocket 49 carried upon a short transversely extending shaft 50. This shaft also includes a bevel gear 51, arranged to mesh with a similar gear 52,'mounted upon the shaft 53 upon which the sheave wheel 29 is mounted. It will be seen by this construction the sheave wheel 29 may be rotated by the source of power employed for driving the belt 19, and a construction is hereby produced'which eliminates the employment of a separate'motor for driving said sheave wheel, and the complicated and expensive worm gearing heretofore employed in transmitting the power of such a motor tothe sheave wheel. Furthermore, not only is the construction simplified mechanically, but the weight thereof is maintained at a minimum, so that the handling of the gathering conveyor may be more conveniently effected and less difficulty encountered in the horizontal shifting of said conveyor and any vertical raising thereof.

To maintain the chain taut while the forward end of the frame is being fed against the work, the member 37 is formed with small clutch teeth 5% at one end there of, or the end opposite to the member 36. The teeth 54 are disposed to mesh with cooperating teeth 55 provided on the bearings :35, so that when the shaft 38 is disconnected from the shaft 31-,-the drive mechanism for imparting movement to the sheave wheel 29 will be automatically locked. This construction prevents undue turning on the part of th sheave wheel 29, and overcomes the reaction at the forward end of the machine which tends to shift the frame horizontally away from the worlr.

By reducing or minimizing the weight of the gathering conveyor, I am enabled to employ a lighter form of pony truck at the forward end of the gathering conveyor than disclosed in my aforesaid application. In previous constructions the weight of the gathering conveyor at the front end has compelled the use of a four wheeled pony truck, upon which the front end of the gathering conveyor is loaded when the machine is to be transported about the mine. In prior constructions this pony truck has been exceedingly awkward, heavy and cumbersome to handle, and has been detachably connected with the gathering conveyor, so that when the gathering conveyor is engaged in loading operations the pony truck can be removed from beneath the forward end of the same and located so as to occupy an inactive position out of interference with the gathering movements of the conveyor. However, a considerable loss oftime has resulted in the use of four wheeled pony trucks because of the time taken toproperly position such trucks and to lower the front end of the conveyor thereon immediately prior to transportation of the machine over the track-way. However, in the present invention I am enabled to employ a two wheeled pony truck structure, designated generally by the numeral 56, which structure is carried permanently by the forward end of the gathering conveyor and 1s quickly movable from active to inactive positions so as to eliminate loss oftime in the adjustment and positioning of the structure. 'As shown in the drawings, 1 accomplish this end by providing the under part of the frame 10 immediately to the rear of the nose extremity 14;, with. bearings 57, in whh is rotatably mounted a transversely extending shaft 58, provided at the outer 1 ends with-relatively fiat extremities 59.

These extremities are provided with openings 60 arranged for the reception of sub stantially vertical pivoting studs 61 carried in connection and arising from 'castor frames 62, in which frames are formed circular bearing heads 63 and wheel yokes 6d. The ends of the yolres 64c carry transversely and horizontally extending axles 65, about which are rotatably mounted track engaging wheels 66. It will be observed that by this construction the wheels 66 will be enabled to turn horizontally about the substantiallyvertical axes provided by the studs 61, journaled in the ends of the shaft 58, sothat the wheels 66 will readily adapt themselves to the curvature of a mine track. Also, to exercise a stabilizing influence upon the w eels 66 and to prevent undue turning thereof while passing over frogs or track crossings, lprovide the yoke 6 with rearwardly extending crank-arms 67 which are united at their outer ends by means of a tie rod '66, the said, rod 68 serving to link the wheels 66 together, and to enable one of said wheels to maintain the other in proper gaged relation.

Arising from the outer squared portions of the shaft 58 is one or more crank arms 69, arranged adjacent to a fixed segment 7 0 carried in connection with the frame 10. The upper end of the crank arm 69 is provided with a pivoted pawl or dog 71, which are adapted for co-operation with notches 72 provided in said segment for the purpose of maintaining the pony truck structure generally in fixed positions of adjustment. It will be seen upon reference to the figures of the drawings, that when the front end 15 of the gathering conveyor is resting upon the ground, and the machine is actively positioned for loading operations, the

wheels 66-of the pony truck are revolved about the axis of the shaft 58, so that said wheels will be )ositionedbeneath the inclined portion 13 of said frame, and elevated to a sufficientextent to avoid interference with materials or other obstacles lying upon the floor of a mine, the pawl 71 serving to maintain the wheels- 66 so ole-- vat-ed. hen thus positioned the gathering conveyor may operate without interference of any nature from the pony truck structure. However, after the materials have been loaded and it is desired to move the machine over a track-way 3, fromone place to another, the pawl 71 is released from engagement with these-gment 70 so that the wheels 66 may drop by gravity into engagement with the mine floor, or in other words immediately in advance of the ends-of theforward rails of the track-way 3, asshown in Figure 2, whereby upon rearward movement of the loading machine'the'front end of said gathering conveyor will be elevated bodily by swinging about the axles 65 of the wheels 66, the said conveyor being ele vated to an extent in which the yokes are arranged vertically, or in other words, the shaft 58 is positioned vertically over the axles 65. lVhen this alignment of parts-occurs the pawl 71 drops into the notch 72, locking the pony truck wheels in their active positions, so that upon further rearward movement of the'inachine, the wheels 66 are drawn up, upon the track-way 3,

permitting the machine tobe readily trans-- ported around a mine.

It will be observed from the foregoing that the present invention provides a gathering conveyor consisting'of but a minimum of operating par-ts whereinmechanical com plication has been eradicated. The pony truck is constantly carried by the front end of the gathering conveyor, and the construction thereof is such that the operation of loading the gathering conveyor onthe rails may be carried out in an extremely simple and rapid manner, overcoming the delays-involved inthe use of separate four Wheeled pony truck constructions. The

pawli 71 is. so constructed as. to be" readily released by hand operations.

lVh-at is claimed is:

1. In a loadingma'chine, a gatheringconveyor including an elongated inclined frame, a support for-the upper end of said framepermittlng the latter to oscillate vertically, a pony truckfor'raising and lowering the front end of said frame, comprising a horizontally and transversely extending shaft rotatably journaled beneath thefor ward part of'said frame, caster bearings turnable about axes at the ends of said shaft and disposed perpendicularly to theaxis ofrotationof said shaft, wheels carried by said bearings, and means-for maintaining said shaft in fixed positions of rotation.

2. In a loading machine, an elongated veyor, comprising an elongated inclined frame, a pivotal support at" the rear end of aid frame permitting the latter to move vertically, a pony truck structure at the forward end of said frame for controlling its vertical movements, said structure con sisting of a shaft arranged to extend horiontally and transversely ofsaid gathering conveyor at the forward part of said frame, castor bearings-carried by the ends of said shaft and rotatable about axesarranged at right angles to the axis of rotation of said shaft wheels carried b said casters and 7 7 meansfor locking said shaft in given-positions of rotation.

In testimony whereof, l name to this specification.

NORTON A. NEWDICK.

have signed my 

